a french medical student cycling around the United States

Equipment

When you’re on the road for a whole year, you need a good equipment. But considering price, quality, weight and volume is a real headache! Here is a detailed presentation of what I’m carrying, or at least what I was carrying at the beginning of my trip, and which could have evolved in the meantime.

In the US, REI is the perfect outdoor shop for travelers, with many products available, of high quality, and a fantastic costumer service (for example, REI reimbourses you for any product bought within the year, you just have to show the bill).

On the road, you figure out that you don’t need much… It is easy to mail your extra equipment with USPS (United States Postal Service), but it can be expensive… I always tried to send less than 4 pounds, because over 4 pounds, your mail turns into « priority mail », way more expensive. The price for a mail just under 4 pounds for France averaged 50$. It was taking around 2 weeks for my mail to get home, so don’t be in a hurry! If you are, well you can use UPS (United Parcel Service), but you won’t like the price…